


Better rule in hell than serve in heaven

by GivemeanID



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Steampunk, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Child Abuse, Homophobia, Inquisition, Mentions of Pedophilia, Misogyny, Multi, One-sided Incestuous thoughts, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Torture, Witches, breathe in his children's direction and he'll kill you, child magnet Tobirama, he doesn't know how it happened, he wants his tranquility back, holy warrior Hashirama, inquisitor Izuna, inquisitor Madara, slight powers, street rat Kushina, street rat Minato, substitute father Tobirama, war veteran Tobirama, witch Mito
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:55:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27962627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GivemeanID/pseuds/GivemeanID
Summary: Tobirama just wanted a drink. Life doesn't agree with him.Mito wanted to find someone good enough to help her in her crusade. She found that someone but she didn't imagine he would be such an asshole.Kushina just wanted to survive another. She finds a reluctant adoptive father that always complain, but would rather slit his own throat than let anything happen to her.
Relationships: Namikaze Minato & Senju Tobirama, Namikaze Minato/Uzumaki Kushina, One-sided Senju Tobirama/Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama & Karin, Senju Tobirama & Uzumaki Kushina, Senju Tobirama/Houzuki Gengetsu, Senju Tobirama/Uzumaki Mito, one-sided Senju Tobirama/Uchiha Izuna
Comments: 57
Kudos: 60





	1. Paradise Lost

**Author's Note:**

> I did mention working on a new story, in the notes of another fic. Here is the first chapter !
> 
> This is very loosely based on His Dark Materials (very).
> 
> Enjoy !

The sanctuary was old, older than the the memories of any living human. The beings sleeping inside were older still, frozen in an unnatural slumber. There were nine of them, taller and larger than any creature currently in the realm of the livings, all nine of them lined at the farthest end of the sanctuary, under an opening in the roof that let the light of the moon reflect on their frozen forms, cold and unmoving as stone. But life was still thrumming under their granite skin, magic as old as the world linked to their very souls, as jailed as they were.

Mito was standin still in the middle of the sanctuary, her fingers linked over her belly, looking straight in front of herself at the nine monumental figures as still as statues, prisonners of the cold dark stones. Her flying broom was lying on her right on the smooth floor of the sanctuary, the black stone veined with silver having been polished through the centuries by hundred of thousands of feet. The stick was dull, the runes on the gleaming metal had stopped glowing hours ago. The wind howled as it engulfed itself in the opening of the roof and made the silks and the heavy woolen cape covering the queen witch fly everywhere. Mito barely blinked, for she wasn't even feeling the cold of the winter wind on her skin.

Her niece had been captured today, her little Karin, the only family she had left. The girl was so sweet and barely sixteen. And now she was at the hand of the Inquisition, and of the worst of their representatives, Izuna Uchiha. Mito sneered just thinking about that man, a psychopath who loved nothing more than making people bleed and heraing them scream. And now her niece had been taken captive by this man and Mito could do nothing to save her and it was killing her inside.

The Chuch had started attacking the different witches territories approximatively three years ago, bombing their lands and sending soldiers. But the witches were not to take kindly this violation of their ancestral lands. They had stood their ground and retaliated in earnest. When the church attacked by the air, they flied around their airships, big and heavy, and set them on fire. When the church attacked by the ground, they shot their soldiers from the air, safe on their flying brooms, making poisoned arrows rain on them.

But the church had more soldiers than they could count, and a lot of them, especially the Holy Warriors, were fanatics utterly convinced they were making the world a better place by forcing people to submit to their doctrine. The witches had won some battles, but slowly and steadily they were loosing ground and warrioresses. Smaller clans had even joined the Church's side, either forced or by personnal conviction. Mito knew her people wouldn't be able to keep going for long. It despaired her. The church kept pressing north, right into Mito's territory, and the queen witch knew they were looking for the sanctuary.

She sighed. One of her youngest clanwomen, just a novice, rushed inside the sanctuary, breathless, the blue flames still burning at the extremity of her flying broom. She stopped right next to Mito and folded in half, her hands on her knees to get her breath back.

"Your Majesty !" she panted,"Elder Aria had a new vision !"

Mito's green eyes widened slightly and she tensed. Closing her eyes, she breathed deeply and then crouched to grab her flying broom. She slowly infused her strength into the metal. The runes started glowing blue and flames of the same color started burning at one of the broom's extremities. It elevated itself into the air, weightless, and Mito jumped on it in a swift movement.

"Guide me, Sora," she pressed.

The young girl bowed and jumped on her own broom, the blue flames burning anew. Mito followed her outside the sanctuary, the winter wind howling in her ears, her long red hair flying around her head like furious snakes. Her crown was made of tiger fangs and her eyelids were painted with ashes to prevent being blinded by the sun.

She was looking magnificent and terrible.

They quickly arrived at the fortified camp surrounding the sanctuary and landed in front of Elder Aria's tent. Mito entered. Elder Aria was sitting on a chair made of aurochs bones and furs, in front of a little hearth on which a teapot was steaming. Like all witches, she was wearing black silks as her only garments, and her feet were bare. Despite her venerable age, she was still spry and battlefit. The only clues about the number of years she had lived were her hair, as white as Mito's were red, and her eyes, milky white and blind, with wrinkles at the corners.

Elder Aria had been but a babe when the Fall had happened, almost a millenia ago, and she remembered how the world had been before, when magic had still been free and the Great ONes were still roaming the earth. Before the Church sealed the Great Ones in a deep slumber, and the magic with them, and used the oppotunity to take the power and extend their influence on the continent. At the moment the only part of the continent still escaping their control was the northern steppes, the realm of the witches.

"Welcome, your Majesty," the older woman said.

"Thank you, Aria," Mito answered, sitting on another chair, on the other side of the hearth.

Elder Aria gave her a steaming cup of tea, smelling like honey and spice. Mito gratefully accepted it, taking a sip and appreciating the strong taste of cinnamon on her tongue. The liquid was scalding but Mito didn't care. Neither heat nor cold could hurt a witch after all. Mito kept the cup between her palms and put it on her lap.

"Sora told me you had another vision, Elder Aria," Mito said.

The older witch's visions had started more than ten years ago. She had predicted the birth of a girl who was going to destroy the world. She had seen the coming of a new Lilith, who would bring the end of the world with her. She had seen the magic brun anew and the Church fall.

The Chuch had hearnt the prophecy, from the mouth of a witch they had captured and tortured. It was what decided them to attack the northern steppes, looking for more informations, desperate to preserve their stranglehold on the continant. It was also what had lef them, for three years now, to searching the child of the prophecy and therefore killing dozens of little girls who had the bad luck to have more or less the right age and no family to protect them.

(Mito wanted to make the Church pay for that.)

She took another sip of tea and waited for Elder Aria to answer her question. The older woman sipped her own cup if tea, letting the silence stretch between them, broken only by the howling of the winter wind outside the ten and the crackling of the fire in the hearth. The dead eyes of Aria were unsettling, despite the fact that Mito had known her for all her life. Finally, Elder Aria finished her cup of tea and stared at Mito.

"I indeed had a new vision," she said. Mito noticed she was sounding tired, and old.

"And what did you see ?"

Elder Aria sighed.

"I saw the girl, and I saw where she is..."

"This is good news !"

Elder Aria didn't seem to share Mito's enthousiasm. The queen witch had to admit she didn't understand why. If the witches found that girl, they would be able to protect her and teach her and give her the time to wake the Great Ones from their sleep and therefore allow magic to flow into the world again after all these centuries, giving the witches a huge edge over the church.

"I am afraid it is not the case, your Majesty," Aria sighed.

"Why for ?"

"The girl... she is in Konoha..."

Mito froze, feeling as if all hope had been sucked out of her chest. Konoha was the capital of the country. It was also the city where the Church had the most influence, the city where the Angels, the most dangerous holy warriors of the Church, were stationned. If a witch were to enter the city, they would be immediately spotted (the flying brooms they never separated from made them too identifiable) and either captured or killed.

If the girl was in Konoha, there was no way the witches would be able to reach her.

Mito dragged her hand down her face and bit her tongue. She inhaled and started thinking. She needed to find a way to find the girl and bring her back to safety, away from the Church, to the northern steppes. If the witches couldn't go to Konoha, then they needed to find someone who could. Someone who had no affiliation with the Church, someone who wouldn't fear going against them, someone whose strength and abilities might rival an Angel's. Elder Aria filled her cup of tea.

"There is no way we will be able to get to the girl," Aria said, her shoulders slumping in defeat,"the Angels would intercept whoever we would send. No witch can do this mission..."

Mito startled. She suddenly had an idea and saw who they should send.

"If we can't send a witch," she said, sipping her tea,"then we should send someone else."

Elder Aria perked up. She squinted.

"You look like you are thinking of someone in particular, your Majesty," she said lowly.

Mito smirked.

"I do think of someone in particular, indeed..."

She finished her tea and put the cup on the ground, next to the hearth. She stood up, her smirk still playing on her lips.

"If you want to oppose angels," she said,"you send a demon, don't you ?"

************

The city was small, and didn't have an official name. Its inhabitants called it Nowhere, in a fit of dark humor. Nowhere was the city located the most east of the country, near the swamps that were the borders between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. Nothing of note ever happened in Nowhere. Its inhabitants worked in the fields all week and went to the only church of the city the week-end.

Nowhere was also a mandatory point of passage for soldiers who were sent to the Land of Lightning to calm down the various revolts that started from time to time since the country had lost the war against the Land of Fire. Therefore, Nowhere had developped a red district with quite a lot of passage.

This was where our story started.

A man pushed a woman inside a cheap hotel room and kicked the door closed while the woman pulled on his shirt, an old shapeless grey thing that the man passed swiftly over his head and threw in a corner of the room, before hauling the woman up, catching her under the thighs and setting her on the bed, covering her with his body. He kissed her roughly as she fisted her hands in his short and shaggy white hair, and he pushed down her underwears and opened the buttons of her shirt before nuzzling between her breasts. After popping up the buttons of his pants and pushing his own underwears down, he hooked one of her legs over his shoulder and penetrated her.

She gasped and gripped his shoulders, her nails breaking the man's diaphanous skin. The moonlight was filtrating through the window and making the man's white hair shine with a silver hue. He started thrusting, the bed creaking with their movements. The room was filled with gasps and soft moans and the smell of sweat and sex. The man finally snaked a hand between their bodies to caress his partner and she tensed like a bowstring, surprised, and came with a muffled shout, arching her back, clamping her legs on his waist, her nails drawing bloody lines on his shoulders. He thrusted into her two more times before coming and sagged on her. After he managed to catch his breath, they separated and he rolled on his side. She huddled against his chest, nuzzling his throat, and he let her do it, pulling the blanket on their bodies and slinging a muscled arm on her shoulders. Soon, their breathings evened out and they fell asleep.

The man was named Tobirama Senju. He was twenty-nine years old. In another life, he had been the beloved second son of a wealthy family from Konoha and a respected officer from their army, a soldier with a reputation spreading across the continent. Now, he was only a pariah, going from city to city, trying to loose himself in alcohol and the arms of strangers. He had turned his back on his family, on his career and on the Church. The only thing he had kept from his previous life were the twin swords he had been using on the battlefield.

The woman was named Kora Hojo. She was thirty-seven years old and one of the many prostitutes of Nowhere. She had come into this life after her husband had been killed in the war against Lightning Country and she had to feed her three sons. She had approached Tobirama Senju at the bar this night because he had been the only one who hadn't leered at her. If she was to be honest with herself, she had chosen well. He hadn't discussed the price, he hadn't tried to force her to do things she didn't want and he had even bothered giving her a little pleasure. This was more than most of her clients.

She wished she had more clients like him. Her job was not easy on good days and horrifying on bad days. But it was the only job she had and the only way she could hope to provide for her children. Men like Tobirama Senju were rare. And with a war still going on, they were becoming rarer.

************

Tobirama woke up with a start, covered in cold sweat. He rolled on his back, panting, the scratches on his shoulders were burning. He looked at the cracked ceiling, his breathing short, his wine red eyes wide open, the prostitute a warm weight at his side. He shakily dragged a hand down his face. The images of his nightmare were still dancing before his eyes and he screwed them shut, breathing deep.

Suddenly, he couldn't bear lying here anymore. Slowly, he stood up and disentangled himself from his bed partner, not wanting to wake her up. He pulled his pants up and buttonned them. He grabbed his grey shirt and put it on, hissing when the rough fabric came in contact with the scratches on his shoulders. Then he took his coat, an old leather thing with a white fur collar, that had been discarded in a corner of the room, and he fished several bucks out of one of his pockets. They were old and crinkled, but they would do. He counted them till he had the right sum, added one more and put them on the night stand, under the key of the room.

Then he left, leaving the hotel as silently as a ghost. The night was still young and he needed a dink, a strong one. It was the only thing that could numb him enough to forget his nightmares. There were still plenty of bars open in the red district, and finding alcohol at this hour of the night would not be a problem. Tobirama entered the first bar he found, sat at the counter and asked for a glass of whisky. The barman gave it to him and Tobirama started drinking, appreciating the heavy taste of alcohol on his tongue.

The bar was quite calm. A few men were drinking quietly in a corner. One of them had a woman on his lap and they were whispering into each other's ear. Suddenly, Tobirama shivered and looked over his shoulder, at the door of the bar. There was noone, but the young man had felt something anyway. He glared at nothing in particular and went back to his glass.

For as long as Tobirama could remember, he had always been hyper aware of his surroundings. Nobody had ever been able to sneak up on him (to his elder brother's despair, who had tried anything he could think about to actually surprise him, to no avail). With time, he had trained himself to guess what the people around him wanted, what they were gonna do next. It had become a second nature. It was what made him such a good warrior, for he was able to anticipate an opponent's actions and react to them accordingly.

The Church said it was a gift from the only god, opposed it to the magic of the witches, that they said was diabolical, was the legacy of Lilith, the first sinner, the first to have disobeyed the only god. Tobirama didn't know what to think of that. If he was to be honest with himself, that gift, as the Church called it, was feeling like a curse sometimes. Being always aware of where people were, of what they were feeling if he concentrated enough, it made him unable to relax, unable to sleep soundly, especially now. This was why he drank. When he was innebriated enough, his senses were dulled and it allowed him to sleep a little bit better.

He took another sip of alcohol and his throat burnt. Tobirama felt the hair on his nape prickle, as if someone was staring between his shoulderblades. But there was noone that was looking at him and nothing that could explain this sensation. Tobirama snorted as he swallowed another mouthful of alcohol. Maybe he was finally going crazy. It took longer than he thought it would. And then he felt four presences coming in the direction of the bar. He bared his teeth, unable to stop himself. The barman looked at him funny but Tobirama honestly didn't care. He was already too angry for that.

Four men entered the bar, all of them wearing black cassocks. Three of them were carrying swords and looking around with sharp eyes. The fourth one was small and paunchy. He had a benevolent smile painted on his face but Tobirama could feel the sick jubilation in his presence and it disgusted him. A priest, from the central Church of Konoha.

Since the red district of Nowhere had come to life, these fuckers had followed. They harrassed the prostitutes, who were only trying to earn a living, and the bar owners, sometimes arresting them to try to 'convince them to give up their wretched ways'. But everybody knew what really happened, for these people rarely showed their faces again after being confronted to the Church. And when they did, they never spoke and were looking haunted.

"My children," the priest spoke in a surprisingly deep voice for such a small man,"why are you loosing yourself in this den of vice ?"

He launched on his usual spiel and Tobirama tuned him out. He felt like he had heard this diatribe a thousand times and he was trying not to break his glass by squeezing it too much. The nails of his right hand were stabbed in the wood of the counter and he was gritting his teeth so hard he felt they were gonna break. The mood in the bar had gone from relaxed to scared and uneasy and it was scrapping his nerves raw, as his someone had been rubbing them with glasspaper.

The priest started adressing the woman in the corner directly and Tobirama felt her fill with dread and glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, to see her tremble and look around for a way out. The priest was litterally vibrating with barely contained satisfaction. Tobirama's skin was crawling with disgust and the images of his nightmare, still fresh, were dancing before his eyes.

And he snapped.

Growling under his breath, he pushed the heavy barstool he was sitting on backward, making it rip on the gorund, loud like nails scratching on a balcboard. The priest's attention - and his guards' - fixated on him and Tobirama grinned savagely. It was okay, he was used to that. He actually liked that. He swallowed the rest of his whisky in one go, feeling the priest's beady eyes on his bobbing throat. He wanted to sneer at the hypocrisy of it all, but he just slammed his empty glass on the counter before looking at the four intruders.

"I came here to drink," he rasped,"and I'd like to do it in peace."

There was bite in his tone and steel in his eyes. The priest considered him thoughtfully for a second before smiling good-naturedly. Tobirama inhaled sharply and bared his teeth.

"My son," the priest started.

"I am not your son," Tobirama growled in warning.

"My son," the priest continued stubbornly,"you are lost. Whatever these sinners promised you, it is an illusion. The Chuch can help y..."

"Fuck the Church !" Tobirama snapped.

He had the deep staisfaction to see the guards pale and their hands fly to the hilt of their swords, and the smile whipped away from the priest's face as if he had been slapped. The man choked on his tongue and Tobirama bared his teeth more widely, looking like a predator about to attack. He kept talking.

"You say you want to save them, but you don't give a fuck about them," he snarled,"you call them sinners when they are just trying to live ! You call yourself pure but I can feel how much you love making them suffer !"

There it was again, the feeling that someone was watching him. He shrugged it off. The barman had disappeared and the clients were slowly inching toward the door, now that the priest's attention wasn't on them anymore. The priest's chubby face contorted in a grimace of rage and his guards started unsheathing their swords. Tobirama crouched slightly, body lax, ready to counter whatever would come his way. The alcohol was singing in his veins. The priest sneered.

"I thought you were a lost sheep, but you are a demon !"

Tobirama spread his arms in a parody of a salute.

"And proud of it !" he snarked.

The priest's face took a comical shade of red and Tobirama grinned. The priest pointed at him with an offended yelp.

"Kill that heretic !!"

The clients made a run for the door. The guards fully unsheathed their swords and rushed toward Tobirama, firmly decided to skewer him. Tobirama didn't care. It wasn't the first time he found himself in that situation, and it wouldn't be the last. These men weren't even the most dangerous or the most terrifying opponents he had ever fought.

Tobirama let the first one come to him, punched the sword away from his hands as he headbutted him straight in the nose. The man cried, his hands flying to his bloody face. Tobirama used him as a support to propel himself and kick the second one in the face. In the same movement, he clamped his thighs on the neck of the third one, before twisting his hips and sending both of them crashing on a table. Tobirama distinctly heard the neck of the church warrior crack ominously and his presence disappeared. Quickly, he disentangled himself from the corpse and jumped on his feet. The one he had kicked in the face had stood up too and was looking a little stunned. Tobirama didn't give him the time to gather his wits. He jumped and kneed him in the solar plexus, sending him sprawling on the ground, senseless. Finally, he kicked the last one behind the head, knocking him out. Then he turned to the priest.

The man had gone from red with fury to grey with panic. He was covered in sweat and his beady eyes were darting between Tobirama and his unconscious guards. Tobirama sneered and the priest made a run for the doo of the bar. But he didn't go far. Tobirama grabbed him by the collar and threw him on the ground before straddling him and punching him in the face, breaking his nose. The priest whimpered as blood gushed from his nostrils. He tried to grab Tobirama's wrists to stop him but the ex-soldier was too strong for him.

"Not so proud now, uh, Father ?" Tobirama taunted.

The priest tried to gurgle something but Tobirama punched him again, and again, and again, till the man under him stopped moving. Tobirma exhaled slowly and stood up. His hands were bloody and now that the tension had decreased, he wasn't even feeling better. He sighed and dragged a hand down his face, smearing the blood on his skin. He needed a drink.

As he bent over the counter to grab a bottle, a presence appeared out of nowhere right behind him. Tobirama froze, feeling his heart miss a bit. He had felt nothing coming. Adrenaline surging in his veins like fire, he straightened up and whipped on his heels to face the danger, teeth bared and muscles tense, ready to attack.

He came face to face with a woman wearing black silks and a heavy woolen cape with a large hood. She was carrying a long metal stick covered in runes. Tobirama recognized it. The flying broom of a witch. His father had been keeping one in their living-room, as a family heirloom, a warprize one of their ancestors had won in one of the many campaigns against the witches. The woman was short and lean yet power was rolling out of her in lazy waves. Tobirama shivered.

He could guess muscles of steel under her porcelain skin, unmarred by scars. From what he could see of her face, she was beautiful, but her piercing green eyes were unnerving and were raising goosebumps on Tobirama's skin. Long red hair were resting on her chest. She had the stance of an old warrioress, experienced and sure of her skills, and Tobirama had no doubt that she could break his skull with that flying broom of hers.

He blinked, forcing himself to relax slowly. She wasn't looking threatening and she seemed to have been here for quite some time (he wondered if she wasn't the one whose eyes he had felt on him earlier). He rested his elbows on the counter and tilted his head on the side, looking at her in the eyes.

"Hello ?" he said.

She smiled, her red lips pursing on her teeth and baring them. Tobirama gulped but didn't move. He tried to relax as much as he could, to look unthreatening. The witch tilted her head on the side. She still hadn't blinked and Tobirama couldn't help but feel like a piece of meat under the gaze of a predator. He was wondering if he would be able to make it to the door before she tried to take his head off when she finally spoke.

"Tobirama Senju," she mused in a melodious voice,"I see that you didn't usurp your reputation."

Her voice was feeling like a feather caressing down his skin, raising goosebumps in its wake. Tobirama's eyebrows disappeared in his hairline, and he felt his cheeks heat (he hoped he wasn't too red). Sparks of pleasure danced down his spine, pooling in his guts, and he swallowed to wet his mouth and give himself a composure. He was feeling like a teenager in front of a crush. It didn't happen to him in... It never happened to him.

"Do I know you ?" he asked in an even voice, trying to hide how much she had affected him.

"You don't," she purred, still smiling,"but I do. Few witches never heard about the White Demon..."

She came to sit on a stool just next to him. She took off her cape, revealing a symetrical face crowned by blood red hair. She was wearing a crown made of tigers fangs that was giving her a savage expression. She had a tattoo on her forehead, a diamond surrounded by complex runes. Tobirama raised a brow at that. He had always been interested in runes and he knew some of them, even if given that the Church had deemed their use heretic, studying them had been out of the question (another thing that fueled his hate of the Church). The silks covering her did nothing to hide her opulent breasts and Tobirama looked elsewhere not to stare at them.

"Always a pleasure to meet an admirer," he snarked.

She chuckled and it did not make him shiver. It did not.

"I fancy a drink, warrior," she purred.

Tobirama inhaled and purred, bending over the counter once again to grab a bottle of whisky and two glasses. He opened the bottle, filled the glasses and gave one to the witch, who took it gracefully and started drinking, still staring at him. Tobirama took a sip himself and refused to look down. The corners of the witch's lips quirked up.

"May I at least know who I am drinking with ?" Tobirama asked acidly.

She took another sip before setting the glass on the counter in an elegant move.

"I am Mito Uzumaki," she said.

Tobirama's wine red eyes widened and he almost spluttered. He knew that name. She was known across the continent as the most powerful queen witch since the Fall. He inhaled.

"I didn't thing you would look like that," he said before he could think the words that left his mouth.

To his great relief, she didn't immediately took his head off for the insult. Instead, she chuckled.

"And what did you think I looked like ?" she asked, sounding genuinely curious.

Tobirama grinned over the rime of his glass. It had been quite some time since he had flirted with a beautiful woman, rather than just picking a prostitute at a bar. And he fully intended to enjoy the moement, even if said woman could probably kill him (in a way that made this moment even more exciting).

"The rumors pretend that you are a monster that eats children for breakfast and that bathes in the blood of her enemies," he said with a crooked smile,"I was imagining horns, and maybe scales..."

She took a sip of her drink, still smiling.

"Sorry to disappoint," she said, spreading her arms as if apologizing.

"I am not disappointed," he quipped,"not at all..."

He put his glass on the counter to stare straight into her eyes. Once again, she didn't look away.

"However," he said, his eyes sharp,"I'd like to know the reason why you wanted to see me... I doubt it was only for my charm, no matter how irresistible it might be..."

Mito drank the rest of her whisky and set her glass on the counter, before licking her lips. Tobirama followed the movement intently, feeling a tightening in his loins. Mito was probably the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and he would be lying if he said he didn't want her. But he needed to know what she wanted with him before deciding anything.

"I need your skills to solve... a little problem," she said.

"What kind of problem ?" he asked. He was curious, but at the same time, he felt he was about to hear something he wasn't going to like.

"I need to retrieve someone, a little girl, from a place where I can't go..."

Tobirama sipped another mouthful of alcohol. He had a bad feeling about her next words. Yet he asked the question.

"Where ?"

"In Konoha."

Tobirama closed his eyes and inhaled. He felt like his head was invaded by bees. It was like this name had awoken his worst memories. The central Church was in Konoha. Which meant that by all means Izuna Uchiha was in Konoha (if he concentrated enough he could probably check that, but he honestly didn't want to feel Izuna's presence right now, even from afar).

He opened his eyes and glared at Mito Uzumaki. He had just wanted a drink. Why did his past traumas chose this night to come bite him in the ass ? The queen witch had stopped smiling, probably understanding her plans weren't unfolding perfectly. Tobirama downed the rest of his glass before slamming it on the counter and sneering at the witch, who raised a brow, not impressed.

"Sorry, your Majesty," he growled lowly,"go find another suicidary idiot to do your dirty work."

Then he whipped on his heels and strode to the door. He had the satisfaction to hear the queen witch scramble on her feet and swear under her breath. Because he was feeling especially contrary, he slammed the door in her face. The atmosphere outside was cold and he was feeling tired and more than a little tipsy. He just wanted to go back to the hotel where he had let his things, crash on the bed and sleep. With a little luck, he would be able to sleep till morning. But the queen witch didn't seem decided to let him go so easily. She surged from the bar, her red hair bristling, her teeth bared, the runes on her flying broom gleaming blue.

"Stop !!" she roared.


	2. Marriage of heaven and hell

Despite himself, Tobirama stopped. Mito Uzumaki's voice was filled with raw power and a lesser man would probably have pissed himself feeling it directed against him. Tobirama just sighed and turned to look at her. She was looking absolutely furious, yet she was still as beautiful.

"You cannot refuse !" she snapped.

"Let me spell it for you, your Majesty," he growled, baring his teeth,"I am not doing your fucking mission ! And while you're at it, go fuck yourself !!"

Mito paled, looking as if she had taken a hit to the solar plexus. Tobirama walked away. He stopped once again when he heard her leugh behind him. It wasn't a warm chuckle like in the bar, it was cold and cutting. He looked over his shoulder.

"I take back what I said," she taunted, smirking cruelly at him,"you did usurp your reputation ! I wouldn't have thought the White Demon was such a coward !"

Tobirama froze. Lips pursed in a predatory sneer, he whipped on his heels to face her.

"I am not a coward !" he snarled lowly.

"Really ?!" she continued,"only a coward would flee at the sole mention of Konoha's name !"

Furious, he strode in her direction and stopped right in front of her, towering over her smaller form. She didn't move she didn't step back. She wasn't even looking scared. Somehow, that incensed Tobirama even more. He growled lowly.

"You don't know shit about me, your Majesty," he spat as if the royal title was an insult,"so don't act as if you do."

She smirked, the corner of her lips quirking up, as if she knew something that he didn't, something that would hurt. He wasn't mistaken.

"I know enough," she purred lowly, giving him a onceover,"I know that only a coward would let the church kill a little girl for what she is."

Tobirama received these words like a punch to the guts. It was like all air had been punched out of his lungs. Pictures of his nightmare flashed before his eyes and bead of cold sweat rolled down his spine. He was painfully aware of the scratches on his shoulders. They itched. He reacted before he understood what he was doing. With a warcry, he jumped on Mito, with the firm intention to pummel her. She reacted as fast as lightning. She stepped on the side and nailed him in the abdomen with the extremity of her flying broom.

He landed on his ass on the ground with a strangled yelp, his breath cut. It was going to bruise. Incensed, he got back on his feet and attacked again. But no matter what he tried, Mito dodged or countered it. His head was fuzzy and his vision quite blurry. She grabbed his arm and twisted it and he cried in pain and surprise. Fury and alcohol sang in his veins, and he kicked backward like an untamed stallion and for the first time it connected, his heel hitting Mito's hip. She growled and let go of his arm. He whipped on his heels, ready to attack again, but apparently the queen witch had enough.

She hit Tobirama on the side of the head with the extremity of her flying broom, then in the solar plexus when he folded in half. It sent him sprawling on his back on the ground, breathless. The world was spinning on its axis and he was seeing stars. Before he could straighten up, Mito was on him, a foot on his chest and the extremity of her flying broom under his chin. He blinked and forced himself to relax. He had troubles breathing. They glared at each other for what felt like a long moment, before Mito huffed and let go, stepping on the side to let him stand up.

"Are you going to listen to me now ?" she said.

"You already have my answer, your Majesty," he groaned, a hand on his bruised ribs.

He stood up shakily and walked away. At first, he thought she was going to attack him again. But she did not, and suddenly her presence disappeared. When he looked over his shoulder, she wasn't here anymore. He sighed, relieved, and left. He wasn't sure he would have been able to bear another assault. She had litteraly wiped the floor with him. The witches' reputation of ferocious warrioresses wasn't usurped a bit. He was going to feel that for days.

He liped back to his inn, went to his room and started stripping. He hissed as he passed his shirt over his head and the fabric rubbed on his bruises. He threw his coat, his shirt and his boots in a corner with his backpack and his swords. He took off his pants and his underwears before grabbing the bucket of water the innkeeper had deposited near the door. It was clear and wasn't smelling like piss, which was better than some things Tobirama had seen. He took the rag floating in the water and used it to wash his skin, feeling better as he washed waya the sweat and the dust. He was still exhausted, beaten and worn out but at least he was clean. He then fetched a pair of loose pants and put them on, before crashing on the bed and closing his eyes.

He lay on his side, unmoving and cold. He wanted to sleep, but the queen witch's words kept turning in his head. He wasn't a coward, it was just... Groaning, he rolled on his back and pressed his fists against his eyes, trying to push away the memories. Letting his arms fall on each side of his body, he inhaled and wondered what made that little girl so important for the witches to try to get her. To be ready to challenge the church on their own territory... He knew he shouldn't dwell on that, but he was curious and maybe he was also hurt by what Mito had told him.

He closed his eyes and regulated his breathing. Just as he was about to fall asleep, Mito's presence popped in front of his door. His eyes flew open and he tensed. Swearing loudly, he jumped on his feet and all but ran to the door, opening it so violently he almost unhinged it. Mito was indeed here, looking pristine, as if she hadn't used him as a punching ball barely an hour ago.

"Do you even know whe to quit, your Majesty ?!" he whisper-shouted, not wanting to alert the innkeeper.

Mito glared haughtily at him without a word and without a single care in the world, she pushed past him and entered the room to sit on the bed. Tobirama just stood there, gaping, flabbergasted by the sheer galls of the queen witch. She was sitting cross-legged on the bed, arms crossed on her chest and glaring mightly at him. Tobirama's large shoulders slumped in defeat as he closed the door and dragged a hand down his face.

"The answer is still no," he groaned petulantly.

Mito glared even more strongly. Tobirama deadpanned.

"Can I get on my bed or do you intend to make me sleep on the ground till I listen to you ?"

He was only half joking. If she tried that, he was sleeping on her, queen witch or not. Mito didn't answer. Instead, she lunged forward, her green eyes spitting lightning. His heart missing a beat, Tobirama stepped backward till his back hit the wall. Mito stopped before their skin touched but Tobirama could feel her heat. He gulped. She was smelling nice, ashes and musk and cinammon. It made his mouth water. Then she spoke, voice cold and merciless.

"You're pathetic," she said.

Tobirama blushed in offence and bared his teeth in warning. Yet Mito continued.

"Such a great warrior," she growled,"and look at you now. Wandering like a lost soul and wasting your skills in bar fights..."

The young man was unable to take it anymore.

"And what do you want me to do ?!" he exploded,"start a revolt against the church ?!"

"Why not ?" she taunted.

Tobirama grounded his teeth together, trying to swallow his anger. The worst about it was that he had thought about it. Everytime he had crossed path with inquisitors or holy warriors, everytime he had seen them harrass people in the stree, for not respecting stupid and unjust rules, he had thought about attacking, about hurting, about killing. But he had never done it. He bit his lower lip almost to blood and looked away. Mito grabbed his wrist, not squeezing, but feeling his pulse under her thumb. He looked at her.

"If you accept my proposition," she said,"I can give you what you lack."

"And what is that ?" he asked acidly.

"A goal. A cause to fight for..."

Tobirama inhaled sharply. Mito took one more step forward, plastering herself against his front, never letting go of his wrist. Tobirama's nostrils flared. A shiver tickled down his spine. Mito tilted her head on the side, her lips slighty open.

"If that doesn't convince you," she purred,"I do have other arguments..."

Tobirama licked his lips. She was warm and soft against him, so beautiful, smelling so sweet. He knew he was being manipulated. He wasn't sure he hated that. He took her other hand in his. She grinned, then stood on her tiptoes to kiss him. He freed his hands and grabbed her by the nape, fisting one hand in her blood red hair. She chuckled wickedly against his lips and grabbed his ass, squeezing. Surprised, he gasped and growled. Not to be one-upped, he grabbed her under the thighs and hauled her up. In a swift movement, she clamped her strong legs around his waist. In two strides, he was near the bed. At this moment, she bucked and twisted and he ended up on his back on the bed, a little poleaxed. She was straddling his waist, her piercing green ayes almost glowing in the dark.

Tobirama blinked as she quickly got rid of his loose pants and took his cock in her hand, stroking it to full hardness in a few efficient movements. Her hands were calloused and rough against the soft skin of his sex and Tobirama threw his head back and panted under the onslaught of sensation, baring his throat and clawing at the sheets. She didn't give him the time to gather his wits. She threw her silks on the side, showing herself in all her naked glory. And damn, she was beautiful. Heavy breasts, round with perky nipples, curvy hips, steel muscles rolling under porcelain skin, a bush of red curls between her legs and Tobirama was struck by the dire need to bury his face between her thighs to lap at her sex and make her scream.

As he was about to grab her hips to roll her on her back and do just that, she gripped his wrists and pushed them on each side of his head. Then she sank on his cock and started riding him as if he was an unruly stallion. Tobirama choked on his breath and shuddered. He didn't think being restarined would have that much effect on himself. He screwed his eyes shut and did his best to match her rhythm.

He felt his pleasure rise, rise, crest and then crash over him. His eyes shot open and he spasmed, choking on a cry as he came. Then Mito came too, her cunt clamping on his cock like a steel vice and his eyes rolled in his skull. When he came back to his senses, Mito was sitting next to him, threading her fingers through his shaggy white hair. He was feeling entirely boneless. She scratched his scalp and he blinked and hummed. It was nice. Usually, the women he took back to his room never showed any kind of tenderness unless he paid them for it.

He stretched lazily and turned to lay on his side. He closed his eyes and inhaled her heady scent deeply. Mito lay next to him and kept threading her fingers through his hair, humming softly. Tobirama threw an arm over her waist and nuzzled between her breasts. Mito laughed.

"I wouldn't have taken you for a cuddler," she teased, her fingers sliding down his spine and her shivered and embraced her tighter.

He thought back about what she had told him before jumping him. He had indeed been wandering aimlessly. Maybe she was right and he needed a goal. Maybe he could... he looked up at Mito.

"Why is that girl so important ?" he asked.

"Hum ?"

"That little girl you want me to find," he mumbled against her throat,"what makes her so special ? Why do you want to find her ?"

The queen witch stayed silent for a moment, nuzzling the top of his head and Tobirama melted a little more into the mattress.

"One of my Elder clanwomen had a vision, a few years ago," she started.

Huffing, she rolled on her back and dragged Tobirama with her. He ended up sprawled on her, his head cushionned on her breasts, her slow heartbeat echoing against his eardrums.

"She saw a little girl who had a great power, a power that we thought lost for the worst," she continued, scratching his scalp and Tobirama couldn't help but think that she was treating him like a particularly big cat. He didn't mind.

One of Mito's strong hands started kneading his shoulders and Tobirama groaned loudly.

"What kind of power ?" he asked groggily.

"The power to destroy the world," she said.

Tobirama's wine red eyes shot open and he straightened up on his elbows to stare at Mito.

"So what ?" he growled,"you want to find her so you can end her ? or so you can use her against the church ? or..."

Mito interrupted him by putting her index on his lips, and deadpanned at him. She rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Why do men always take everything litterally ?" she groaned.

Tobirama scoffed, a little offended, and sprawled back on Mito, maybe with a little more strength than necessary. She huffed and pulled a little on his hair as a warning. Rolling his eyes, he bit lightly on her breast. Mito laughed and patted him on the head.

"Snappy, huh ?" she teased.

Tobirama growled.

"Will you tell me what I'm missing ?" he grumbled,"or do I have to guess ?"

Mito hummed thoughtfully.

"What do you know about the Fall, warrior ?" she asked.

Tobirama chewed on his tongue, raking his brain to try to remember what the priest had taught him when he was a kid. He had done his best to bury anything the church had taught him under walls of ice. He sighed.

"The first woman, Lilith," he started,"refused to obey the only god and fled the garden of Eden. She allied with the devil and sent great beast against the garden. The only god sent his angles to protect the garden and its inhabitants, and a long and bloody war started. Finally, the humans, with the help of the angels, managed to seal the great beasts and drove Lilith away."

He swallowed to wet his mouth. He had always found this story strange. It didn't tell exactly why Lilith had disobeyed and fled, or why she had allied with the devil, or from where the great beasts came from. When he had asked these questions to a priest, he had received only unsatisfactory answers and he had felt he had irritated the old man. He had stopped asking questions. But they had always stayed there, at the back of his head. He kept talking.

"Lilith kept trying to drive humanity away from the right track as a revenge. The Church, and the Inquisition, were founded to spread the words of the only god and to counter her wretched plans."

He gritted his teeth and inhaled sharply through his nose. He always tasted bile when he spoke about the Inquisition. He felt a scorching hand on the small of his back and he shuddered, screwing his eyes shut to chase the memory away. Mito caressed his back.

"We witches do not have the same version of that story," she said softly.

Tobirama snorted.

"No kidding... what is your version then ?"

He tried to make it sound like it didn't interest him that much, but he was indeed curious.

"Lilith did exist," Mito said,"she was the first of the witches, the first one who talked to the Great Ones, the guardians of magic. Those you called the great beasts..."

Tobirama straightened on an elbow to look at her more closely.

"They taught her how to wield magic, how to forge flying brooms and she taught it to other women. Magic was flowing through the world then, and life was simpler, softer."

The young man frowned. This was indeed not sounding like the version of the church at all. And he didn't understand what had led to the present situation. He wasn't feeling any lie in Mito's presence. She was believing hard as steel that what she was saying was the truth. Yet, when he was little, he had felt no lie in the priest's presence, when the old man had told him the story of the Fall.

"What happened then ?" he asked. He was curious, bite him.

Mito's piercing green gaze became colder and he felt her body tense under his.

"A man, named Adam, asked for Lilith's hand. She refused. He didn't appreciate and he tried to force her."

Her hands tensed on his shoulders and her nails, sharp like caws, broke his skin. Tobirama didn't move.

"She beat him," Mito continued,"and he went back to his clan, saying she was dangerous, saying the witches were demons who wanted to kill them all. They attacked the witches, who retaliated. It escalated and became so violent that Lilith asked the Great Ones for their help. It allowed the witches to push back their assaillants."

She stopped and looked at the ceiling, scratching Tobirama's scalp absent-mindedly. The silence stretched until it became uncomfortable. One of Tobirama's elegant white eyebrow arched and he licked his lips.

"And then ?" he asked.

Mito blinked and then straightened up, her abdominals rippling, and she kissed him. Surprised, it took a few second for Tobirama to reciprocate. But he did, using his superior weight to nail Mito where she was and kiss her deeply. After they separated to breathe, Mito continued her story.

"The humans were loosing, they knew it, they also knew that the only way to tip the scales in their favor was to get rid of the Great Ones, and of Lilith."

Her hold on Tobirama's short hair became tighter and he felt her anger boil under her skin.

"A man from Adam's clan seduced a young witch," she growled, baring her teeth,"he convinced her to teach him how to neutralize the Great Ones. And she did. He convinced her to kill Lilith. And she did. They sealed the Great Ones, and the magic of the world with them, leaving only scraps... the rest is history..."

Tobirama chewed on his tongue. This story was a little more credible than the one the Church told, yet Tobirama couldn't help but wonder if it was indeed the truth. The witches and the Church were at war. And propaganda was widespread in war, deforming reality either to raise the troops morale or to slander an enemy.

"How do I know that this is the truth ?" he said tiredly,"that this version is the right one, and not the church's ?"

Mito chuckled.

"One of my clanwomen was alive when all of that happened," she just said.

Tobirama blinked, then gaped. He looked at Mito with wide eyes.

"How old is she ?" he blurted, unable to stop himself.

"A millenia."

Tobirama choked. He knew witches lived long, this was widespread knowledge. But this, this was insane. Another thought hit him.

"How old are you ?!" he squeaked.

Mito grinned and he could feel the amusement in her presence. He groaned and sprawled on her.

"You're not going to answer, are you ?" he complained petulantly.

"Not this one, no," she chuckled.

She hummed, hers sliding down his back and Tobirama fought a shiver. Her hands were warm on his skin and it was doing wonders on his weary muscles. He was really feeling like a cat right now.

"I can answer another of your question, though," Mito said.

"Hummm ?" Tobirama grumbled sleepily. Exhaustion was finally catching up with him. His head was fuzzy from the alcohol, the sex and the hits he had taken on it.

"The girl, you asked why she was so important... we believe she is the new Lilith, that she can wake the Great Ones... that she can make magic come back into the world..."

Tobirama froze.

"When we say she can destroy the world, we witches mean the system. We mean the world as it is now. We mean the Church."

Tobirama felt his mouth dry. Destroy the Church... if that little girl could do that... He shuddered and screwed his eyes shut, burying his face against Mito's throat. She embraced him tighter, nuzzling his hair. Little by little, her heartbeat lulled him to sleep.

When he woke up the next day, the sun was tickling his face and he was hungover as fuck. At first, he thought he had drunk too much yesterday evening and hallucinated his encounter with the queen witch. But he quickly understood that this wasn't the case. There was a slow and steady heartbeat under his ear and a warm body nestled against his. He opened his eyes and was faced with a waterfall of red. He inhaled a musky and heady scent and tingles danced down his spine.

He straightened up on an elbow and looked around blearily. Mito was indeed here, sleeping soundly next to him. Once again, he was struck by how beautiful she was. He sat on the edge of the bed, yawning widely. It was the first time in years that he had managed a full night of sleep without being woken up by a nightmare. Mito seemed to have a relaxing effect on him. He sighed and stretched till something popped in his back. He put his elbows on his knees and his forehead on his hands and thought back about everything Mito had told him last night.

A little girl who had the power to destroy the Church. If the Inquisition (and worse, Izuna) put their hands on her, she was going to die in horrible conditions. Tobirama bit his lower lip till blood dripped down on his chin and he glowered at the cold winter sun that was peeking through the window. He coudln't let it happen. Even if Mito was completely dellusionnal and the little girl had no power whatsoever, he couldn't let it happen. He exhaled and stood up. He walked to the window and looked outside. There wasn't a lot of agitation and he wasn't feeling any suspect presences around the inn. It looked like his little stunt of last night hadn't raised too much alarm.

His wine red eyes fell on the twin swords propped against the wall of the room. How many times had he dreamt using them to end his own life ? He pressed his fists against his eyes and breathed deeply. Once. Twice. When he opened his eyes, they were steely. No more, he decided. No more wasting his time and energy in alcohol, no more crying on his fate and his powerlessness.

He was not powerless, far from it. Izuna terrified him and unfortunately, he couldn't do a lot about it. But he had been terrified the first time he had fought on a battlefield, and yet he had come out of it alive. He would come out alive of this too. He would not let Izuna win this. He would not let the Inquisitor kill another innocent.

Behind him, Mito stirred and Tobirama looked at her over his shoulder. She sat, stretched and yawned, before looking at him and smiling slyly.

"Why standing alone in the cold, warrior ?" she teased.

Tobirama crossed his arms on his chest, and huffed, his full lower lip jutting out, still marred by teeth marks. Mito jumped on her feet, seemingly weightless, and sauntered to him, catching him by the elbows and stading on her tiptoes to lick the trail of blood on his chin. Then she kissed him. Tobirama opened his mouth for her.

"What does she look like ?" he asked when the kiss ended.

Mito blinked.

"The little girl," he said,"what does she look like ? If I have to tot every little girl I meet across the country, that's gonna be a little difficult."

Mito squinted, silent. Her hands left his elbows and landed on his pectorals, appreciating the firmness of his muscles.

"You accept," she said. It wasn't a question.

"I do," he said,"and I'm going to need to know everything you do. I can't afford going in blind, especially in Konoha, if we want this to succeed."

Mito tilted her head on the side, looking thoughtful. Tobirama frowned, feeling his cheeks heat slightly. He looked away, uncomfortable. Even if he was currently naked in front of her, and wasn't bodyshy in general, he was feeling as if her piercing green eyes were seeing his very soul.

"What ?!" he finally snapped.

Mito smiled softly. It made Tobirama blush and he internally cursed his pale complexion.

"You speak like a leader," she said, putting her hand at the center of his chest, over his heart,"I like it..."

Tobirama uncrossed his arms. Mito stood on her tiptoes and pecked him on the lips.

"I am going to tell you everything I know, warrior. It is unfortunately not much, but it is better than nothing..."

Tobirama nodded.

They used the bucket of water, freezing, and the rag to wash themselves. Mito washed his back, her hands warm and contrasting with the coldness of the water. She hummed and scrubbed his skin thouroughly. Tobirama closed his eyes and enjoyed the attention, before reciprocating. While he washed her back, Mito told him everything she knew, which was indeed not a lot.

Like a had suspected, the Church knew about the prophecy and the girl. But they had no idea where she was, which meant that Tobirama was one step ahead of them. As they dried themselves and put their clothes on, Mito gave him a worn piece of vellum on which a portrait of a little girl had been draed in charcoal. The drawing was incredibly detailled and showed a little girl with long hair and chubby cheeks, staring at him with determination.

Mito finsihed adjusting her silks and threw her heavy wolen cape on her shoulders as Tobirama put on his boots and buckled his belt.

"Her hair are the same red as mine," she said.

Tobirama bit the tip of his tongue and nodded. He folded the piece of vellum and put it in a pocket of his backpack, that he threw on his back. He then secured his twin swords in his back, under his leather coat, the fur collar dissimulating the hilts. They were short, shorter than most blades still in use on the battlefield. But they were made of the best steel and sharp as razor blades.

For all that he forgot to take care of himself, Tobirama never forgot to take care of his blades.

"When I'll have found her," Tobirama asked,"where do you want me to take her ?"

"Take her to the northern border. We will meet you there, and take you into a safe place."

Tobirama inhaled.

"And you," he said,"what will you do while I search for the girl ?"

Mito smiled and patted his cheek.

"There are a lot of people who are unhappy with the church," she smirked,"some of them just need a push in the right direction."

Tobirama smirked wickedly as he understood what she intended to do. He could appreciate a petty plot, especially if the Church was gonna be victim of it.

"Come back alive, warrior," Mito said, caressing his cheek almost tenderly.

Tobirama snorted.

"I'll do my best, your Majesty," he growled playfully.

Mito rolled her eyes, caught him by the hair and forced him to bend down, before kissing him almost ferociously. She let him go with one last lick over his mouth. Tobirama was feeling a little light-headed. He straightened up and cleared his throat. Mito smirked at him and left the room. When Tobirama followed her, she had already disappeared. Tobirama's eyebrows disappeared in his hairline and he whistled lowly between his teeth, impressed. This was one hell of a useful trick. There had been some times where he would have liked being able to do that.

He payed the innkeeper, feeling the man's presence to be sure he wasn't up to something. He had had enough bad experiences with innkeepers to become wary. But that man was smiling good-naturedly, and his presence wasn't telling otherwise. Tobirama payed the price of the room and left, strode outside without a glance back. He walked briskly to the airship station, making a large detour to avoid the central place of the town where the church was towering.

In little border towns like Nowhere, airships were the only way to join the capital or any of the big cities. Trains were linking the main cities between themselves, but in little towns, especially those at the borders, one could only count on the airships if they wanted to travel far. Or one had to go on foot. It was usually the method Tobirama favored, but today he had neither the time nor the patience.

The airship had a flaw, though. They were fucking expensive. And Tobirama couldn't afford it, even with what was left of his last pay for a job as a bounty hunter in the Land of Lightning. Tobirama cracked his neck. With time and necessity, he had become quite a good pickpocket. He quickly found a prey, a tall and paunchy man with a top hat and a cane. Pretending to look elsewhere, Tobirama walked straight into him. The older man toppled down and ended up on his ass on the ground, swearing. Tobirama immediately started to apologize and helped the man standing up, dusting the heavy velvet coat. The old man snarled and glared daggers at him, before walking away briskly, huffing in offence.

Tobirama watched him disappear, before throwing in the air the wallet he had just stolen and smirking. It worked everytime. Whistling cheerfully, he went and bought a place for the ship going to Konoha. When the old man noticed he had been robbed, Tobirama was already up in the air.


	3. Divine Comedy : Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning : this is a very heavy chapter, if any of the tw I will list is a problem for you, don't force yourself to read. Stay safe;
> 
> Specific trigger warnings : torture of children, murder of children, sexual and moral harrassment, misoginy, racism

Tobirama was sitting on an uncomfortable seat in a vibrating airship and he was remembering very well why he hated airships in the first place. He felt like he was locked inside a flying steel coffin and his fight or flight reflex was perturbated. A lot. He closed his eyes and squirmed on his seat to find a more comfortable position. He huffed and sighed. It had been years since he had last seen Konoha, and his last visit hadn’t been cordial, to say the least.

Using his backpack as a pillow, he tried to ignore the vibrations of the airship and to fall asleep.

************

Ten years ago, Konoha, Senju estate.

Tobirama dodged a sword aiming for his chest, grabbed his opponent’s arms and twisted it viciously, making him let go of his weapon. In the same movement, he countered a hit from another opponent with his own sword. Pushing on his legs, he jumped and kneed his second opponent in the chest, sending him sprawl on the ground with a breathless oof. Not letting go of his first opponent, he twisted his arm more, making the man cry out, just before sweeping his legs from under him. The man landed on the ground on his ass like the other.

Tobirama heard someone clap slowly behind him and he turned to see his father. He grinned, helped his spar partners on their feet, thanking them, and walked to Butsuma, who patted his shoulder.

« Seeing you fight is always a delight, » his father said.

« Don’t be stupid, » Tobirama replied, blushing slightly.

Butsuma snorted and ruffled his son’s shaggy snow white hair, who protested half-heartedly (he would never admit it, but he liked when his father acted like that with him).

« Go wash and change, » his father said, « then come to my office. There is someone who want to meet you. »

Tobiramaglanced at the silhouette dissimulated behind one of the stone pillars surrounding the court. He raised a brow and looked pointedly at his father. He had sensed the presence enter the estate at the same time as his father, but he was positive he didn’t know them. Butsuma didn’t answer his implicit question, but smiled at his son good-naturedly and gave him a light slap on the rump to get him going. Tobirama hissed and scowled.

« Chop chop, boy, » Butsuma laughed.

« I am not a boy anymore, » Tobirama groused.

« You’ll always be my boy, even when you’ll be old and grey… oh wait... »

Tobirama deadpanned at him, trying to signify his father just how lame he found his joke. Butsuma tilted his head in the direction of the house and Tobirama rolled his eyes but obeyed anyway. He put his training sword in its rightful place after cleaning it. He then went to take a quick bath, scrubbed his skin clean of the sweat and the dust and washed his hair. He then put on formal clothes, a white shirt with a sleeveless white jacket, and black pants with leather boots. He then joined his father in his office, where he could also sense the new presence.

He knocked on the door and waited till Butsuma told him to enter. When he did, his father was sitting behind his desk and another man, short and lean, wearing an uniform from the army, was sitting on a comfortable armchair. He had an undercut and short black hair, sharp features and the gaze of an hawk, dark and piercing. He gave Tobirama a onceover that made the hair on the young man’s nape prickle. He suppressed a shiver and came to stand in front of his father’s desk. He grabbed one of his wrists behind his back and waited. The stranger’s gaze hadn’t left him.

« Father, » Tobirama said in a steady voice, « you wanted to see me ? »

Butsuma stood up, smiling, and bypassed his desk to approach his son. They were of ehight, but Butsuma was wider and heavier, made for strength where Tobirama was built for speed. He put his hand, large and warm, on Tobirama’s shoulder. He looked at the stranger, who hadn’t moved, and Tobirama did so.

« Tobirama, » his father said, « here is Tajima Uchiha. He’s an old friend, and one of the generals of our armies. »

Tobirama blinked and then bowed before the Uchiha.

« It is an honor to meet you, Lord Uchiha, » he said politely.

Tajima chuckled.

« The honor is mine, young man, » the general said.

He stood up from his armchair and gave his hand to Tobirama, who shook it. The Uchiha had strong and calloused hands. A warrior, no doubt.

« Your father keeps boasting about your skills with a sword, » Tajima said, « and I had troubles believing it all. It is known that fathers are not the best when it comes to be objective about their sons... »

Tobirama didn’t answer, waiting for Tajima to continue.

« However, I have to admit that my old friend did not lie. Seeing you fight is a delight. »

Tobirama couldn’t help but blush a little, pink dusting his cheeks and he internally cursed his pale skin.

« My father exagerates, » he just said, hanging his head down.

Tajima chuckled, before sitting back on his seat. Butsuma motionned Tobirama to another armchair, where he sat, while Butsuma went back behind his desk.

« I don’t know if you’ve heard the rumors, son, » Butsuma said, looking grim.

« About a possible war with Lightning Country ? » he asked. He glanced quickly at Tajima and saw the corners of the older man’s lips quirk up.

« Indeed, » the Uchiha answered, « They have been pushing at the border. Our diplomats are doing what they can, but we know we will have to fight one day or another. This is why we are putting our armies in order for war. »

Tobirama nodded. He had been listening to the rumors lately, behind closed doors, or when he crossed path with people. He waited for Tajima to continue, even if he already had a fairly precise idea of what the older man was going to say.

« We need men of value, » Tajima said, « men able to lead and to fight. This war is going to be hard and bloody. We can’t afford to have weak officers if we want to win it. »

He considered Tobirama thoughtfully, his dark gaze bearing into the young man’s diaphanous skin.

« I don’t think you are weak, Tobirama, »Tajima said sincerely, « and I’ve seen you fight, I’d bet you’ll do wonders on a battlefield. »

Tobirama inhaled. Integrating the army was a springboard for anybody who desired to pursue a career either in politics or in the church. If he shone on the battlefield, it was the surest and most direct way to integrate the Angels, the holiest warriors of all.

His elder brother, Hashirama, had left the house ten years ago, at fifteen, to be trained to become an Angel. A priest had seen the grace of the only god in him, had convinced his hierarchy to give Hashirama a chance. And they had accepted. Hashirama had always had a way with people, a strong desire for peace and a deep fervor. He was strong too, the strongest person Tobirama knew.

It had been ten years ago. Tobirama, nine years old at the moment, had been unconsolable. He hadn’t understood why his big brother, whom he loved and admired so much, was leaving him. He had cried, he had asked questions but the answers he got from his father and from others (which more or less amounted to ‘the only god chose him’) never satisfied him. He wanted his brother. It was approximatively at this moment that Tobirama had decided he would become a holy warrior, so he could be at his brother’s side and protect him.

But no priest had seen in him what they had seen in Hashirama. He asked too many questions, and not the right kind, and he was interested in too many things, and not the right kind (was it his fault if the world was so big and wonderful and if the answers the church gave to his questions were dull and dumb, compelling him to ask elsewhere ? ). His looks were too strange, as he was often told. So he had tried as hard as he could to conform to what was expected of him. He prayed (when he would rather read) and he obeyed the rules (even when he would rather not). And he trained, he trained till his hands were bleeding, till his knees were buckling under him, till his muscles screamed for mercy.

He had become strong, and fast, and so good with a sword that even his hard-to-please father couldn’t ignore it (his father loved him, Tobirama knew it, felt it, Butsuma just had troubles expressing it). And now, his dream was becoming a reality, he was just one hair short from what he wanted, from being at his brother’s side to support him. He stood up and bowed before Tajima Uchiha.

« I won’t disappoint you, my Lord, » he said.

Tajima grinned.

« Spoken like a true warrior, » he said, « a letter will be sent to you in the next days, to tell you where to present yourself. We will probably see each other again soon. »

Tobirama nodded, litterally vibrating inside but doing his best not to show it. Butsuma smiled benevolently at his son’s badly concealed enthousiasm.

« You can go, boy, » his father said, « Tajima and me need to speak. »

« As you wish father, Lord Tajima... »

He saluted both men before exiting the office and closing the door behind himself. Then he rested his back against a wall, inhaled deeply and a big dumb grin splitted his face in half. He was almost there. Just a few more efforts and he would be at Hashirama’s side. He couldn’t wait.

Radiating with joy, Tobirama sauntered to his room.

************

War started a few weeks after this event. Tobirama, who had just joined the army of Konoha as captain, under the tutelage of Tajima, had been sent on the front. The first days were rough. His young age, his unusual looks and his family name were aong the many reasons the soldiers under his command were distrustful of him. They thought he had had strings pulled for him. They were not entirely wrong, but Tobirama was deadset on proving he had his place here, and wasn’t just the son of a rich family who had begged his father for a place in the army.

Tajima had advised him to lay low at first, to get the lay of the land. Tobirama had followed this advice for exactly four days. After four days of being called a ghost to his face or behind his back, of seeing his orders either ignored or ridiculed, Tobirama had snapped. He had cornered one of the biggest troublemakers and had challenged him.

And broken his nose.

Strangely, the soldiers had warmed up to him after that. They still called him ghost, but it was more affectionnate than vindicative. The young Senju had earned their trust, bit by bit, battle after battle, as he led them to victory and protected their lives with his own. He had gained a reputation, of a fearsome warrior and respected leader. More than once, he had acted as a beacon on the battlefield, his pale coloring allowing him to be seen and their soldiers to gather around him, his white hair being a warbanner for their troops.

He had gained a reputation (since he had survived several snippers on the battlefield, hunted them down and killed them, their opponents said he was unkillable and that you couldn’t escape him) and a nickname.

The White Demon.

He wasn’t sure he liked it. This wasn’t exactly the idea he wanted to convey (this was the opposite, actually). But that meant he had a name. That meant one couldn’t ignore him. That meant one moment or another, the higher-ups were going to notice him. He just had to wait and be ready.

He didn’t have to wait for long.

Three years after the beggining of the war, when it became clear that the armies of Konoha would win and i was just a matter of time before Lightning surrendered, Tobirama was called for a secret mission in a little city at the heart of Lightning Country. He went without asking questions. Only when he reached it did he learn that Hashirama’s unit of Holy Warriors was stationned here, along with inquisitors form the Central Church.

************

« Did anybody ever tell you you have a woman’s mouth ? »

Tobirama, who had just spent three days on the road, had barely slept, was feeling so cold he was starting to doubt he would ever feel warm again, and was feeling so dirty and disgusting he would kill someone for a hot bath, put the steaming cup of coffee he had just been offered on the table and turned to the source of the stupidest question he had ever been asked.

It turned out said source was a short man around Tobirama’s age, with weasely features (even if he was quite beautiful), long dark hair kept in a low ponytail, piercing dark eyesthat Tobirama was pretty sure he had already seen somewhere, and wearing an uniform from the Inquisition. Tobirama gave him a onceover, making sure to look as unimpressed as possible.

« Excuse me ? » he said, tone flat.

The inquisitor smiled pleasantly, but Tobirama felt a shiver tickle down his spine. He didn’t liek this man. There was something foul in him and this was rubbing the young Senju the wrong way. The other continued, licking his lips subrepticely.

« I said, that’s a very pretty mouth that you have. I wonder what these lips would look like stretched around... »

Feeling his already depleted patience stretched to its limit, Tobirama sneered, bared his teeth and growled. This was a habit he had picked up on the battlefield, since he had found out that people usually fled when he did that. It had the escompted effect, for the weasely inquisitor stopped talking and took a step back. Tobirama stood at full height to glare at him.

« Should I warn the Inquisition that one of their men is making obscene propositins to people ? » he snarled lowly.

The inquisitor’s dark eyes widened slightly, but then he started laughing, a high and throaty chuckle that had Tobirama’s metaphorical hackles raising. He didn’t know what kind of joke he was being the butt off, but he wasn’t appreciating it at all. The inquisitor raised his hands in surrender in front of his chest.

« Easy soldier, » he said, « I was merely jesting.. »

« Do you jest liek that with everybody ? » Tobirama deadpanned acidly.

The inquisitor chuckled and Tobirama gritted his teeth.

« Of course not, » the inquisitor purred, « but since we are gonna spend a lot of time together, I wanted to see what you were made of... »

Tobirama raised a brow (the other was lying, he could feel it).

« What do you mean ? » he asked, even if his instincts were telling him to break the weasel’s neck and scram as fast as possible.

« You do not know why you are here ? »

« No. I have been told I would be explained the details of the mission once I would get here... »

« You are here to be my bodyguard. »

Tobirama frowned but the inquisitor didn’t let him the time to speak.

« This area is swarming with heretics, we have been sent here to have a clear-out. »

« Okay, but I do not understand why you would need a bodyguard. »

« The Angels are doing most of the cleaning but we will need to give them a hand, especially to gather informations on the heretics whereabouts. And I can’t go alone on the field. »

« The Angels can’t protect you ? »

« They are stretched thin and have a lot on their plates. You do almost sound like you do not want to be here... »

Not liking the glint in the inquisitor’s dark eyes, or the wicked twist in his presence, Tobirama bristled.

« My men are risking their lives on the frontlines, » he growled, « so I am just trying to make sure I will actually be useful here and not just a glorified babysitter ! »

The inquisitor started howling with laughter.

« You do have guts ! I like that ! Don’t worry, you will be thoroughly occupied ! »

He gave Tobirama his hand and the young Senju shook it gingerly. Maybe he squeezed harder than what was strictly necessary.

« I am Izuna Uchiha, » the inquisitor said cheerfully.

Tobirama’s wine red eyes widened slightly.

« Tobirama Senju, » he said curtly.

« Oh ! Do you happen to be a parent of Hashirama Senju ?! »

« He’s my brother, » the young man answered. For a reason he couldn’t understand at the moment, he didn’t like the idea of Izuna knowing too much about him.

« Really ? You don’t look like him at all ! »

« Yeah, people keep telling me that, » Tobirama groaned tiredly. He had been told all his life that he wasn’t like Hashirama, wasn’t as good as him, wasn’t as kind as him, as handsome, as charismatic, as anything you wanted and he was honestly sick of it.

« Follow me, » Izuna said, « I’m going to show you your room and the bathrooms. You probably want to clean yourself. »

Tobirama nodded and fell into step with Izuna. The inquisitor showed him a little room that was looking more like a cell than anything else, and then the showers, which were shared and without any cabin. Tobirama made a face. After bidding goodbye to Izuna (who had told him to sleep well in a saccharine sweet voice that had made Tobirama nearly murderous), he put his things in his room (which on top of everything couldn’t be locked) and went to take a quick shower. The water was barely cool but at least he was able to truly wash himself for the first time in more than a week.

The other people he crossed path with were neither talkative nor welcoming but the young man had managed to get to know an old soldier in the canteen. He told him that Hashirama and his unit were on a mission and should come back in three days. Tobirama just hoped he would be able to see his brother before he tried to strangle Izuna and end up in jail.

The two first days were uneventful. But the third day, they were called out of the headquarters, in a village where the inquisitors suspected heretics were hiding. Tobirama kept his questions behind his teeth and dutifully shadowed Izuna. The villagers were looking at their feet, doing their best not to be noticed by the inquisitors. Tobirama could feel their terror and their hostility and he shivered. Izuna ordered the villagers to be gathered on the central place of the village and when that was done, he started circling them, looking almost predatory. The young Senju had a bad feeling about it all, but he said nothing.

Finally, Izuna stopped before a middle-aged woman, who was holding her daughter against her. The girl had to be somewhere around ten, she was cute, with long blond hair, babyfat clinging to her cheeks, and big brown eyes. Young and innocent. Tobirama smiled encouragingly at her, trying to make her understand it would be over soon, she just had to wait. And she smiled shyly at him. It was at this moment that Izuna’s presence twisted wickedly. Tobirama tensed and the inquisitor pointed at the woman and her daughter.

« Them, » he just said.

Two soldiers grabbed the woman and the little girl and they cried, pleading. The villagers trembled and screamed. And then a blond man rushed out of the crowd and ran to Izuna with raised fists and a warcry on his lips. Tobirama react before he could think. He got in the man’s way, grabbed his arm, twisted it and put him in a headlock.

« Good job, captain, » Izuna smirked, « kill him. »

« What ?! » Tobirama croacked.

« The punishment for helping heretics is death. »

Stunned, Tobirama glanced at the woman and the little girl, tears streaming down their faces. Tobirama was feeling nothing wrong with them, no ill intentions, no wickedness. Izuna had to be mistaken.

« We do not know if they are heretics, » he said in a hoarse voice, « there is no reason to... »

« Oh captain, » Izuna purred, « you are kind. Too kind… this is going to get you killed one of these days. Heretics do not care for your kindness. They will use it against you, will make you think you are safe before stabbing you in the back. »

He smiled, kind and pleasant, but his presence was curling with thick jubilation and threat and Tobirama understood the other man was getting off on this. He shivered.

« Kill him, » Izuna said again, looking at Tobirama with hooded eyes.

Tobirama looked around. He didn’t want to kill that man (who, now that he thought about it, was probably the girl’s father), but there were as many soldiers as villagers, and all of them were armed. And Tobirama felt no hesitation in their presence. If he chose to disobey, none of them would be on his side. They found the situation normal, and would probably slaughter the villagers if Izuna ordered them to.

Tobirama breathed, looked at the little girl, who was crying, and wondered what the hell he was doing. He was one hair short from reaching his dream, so why was he thinking about going against direct orders from an inquisitor ? It would destroy all his chances to see Hashirama again, would burn his lifelong dream to ashes. But at the same time, he had troubles believing Hashirama would participate to something like that. His strong, charismatic, kind-hearted brother… No way Hashirama would kill innocents ! He had to be unaware of what was happening. If Tobirama told him, he would back him up. But that meant Tobirama had to wait until he came back.

Closing his eyes, he silently prayed the man he was holding for forgiveness and broke his neck in one swift movement. The corpse fell on the ground like a puppet which strings had been cut. At least, it had been painless. He looked grimly at Izuna, who was smirking. Tobirama could feel the inquisitor’s satisfaction, and the villagers’ anger, fear and ressentment. It made the hair on his nape prickle.

« Perfect, captain, » Izuna purred, « let’s go back to the headquarters. »

Tobirama gritted his teeth and followed him glancing at where the woman and her daughter were thrown in a truck. He wanted to scream. He got into the car with Izuna and started it. He drove to the headquarters, mute for the entire duration of the trip, no matter how much Izuna talked to him. He could feel the inquisitor’s dark eyes on him and it raised his hackles.

They reached the headquarters and Tobirama parked the car. Him and Izuna got out, just as the truck parked next to them and the woman and her daughter were dragged out of it and into the headquarters, crying and pleading. Tobirama shivered, feeling bile rise in his throat. He turned to Izuna who was watching him intently, like a hyena watching a wounded prey.

« What now ? » Tobirama forced out.

« Now we interrogate them to know where the other heretics are hiding, » the inquisitor answered with a little smirk, almost quivering with expectative.

Tobirama inhaled.

« We do not even know if they are heretics, » he breathed.

Izuna chuckled, cupped Tobirama’s cheek with one hand and rubbed his lower lip with his thumb. Tobirama froze, unable to breathe, torn between the need to flee and the desire to wring Izuna’s neck. The unwanted contact lasted for half a second before Izuna patted his cheek good-naturedly, like an adult would do to a child who asked too many questions.

« Believe me, captain, » he purred lowly, « they are. »

Tobirama felt like cold water dribbling down his back as Izuna left, walking into the building. He rushed after him, trying to find an argument but the words were escaping him. All around him, in every person he crossed path with in the corridors, the sentiment was either satisfaction or indifference. Tobirama felt distress crush his windpipe. He had no ally here, yet he couldn’t let two innocents be hurt.

He raked his brain, trying to find a solution. Then he remembered that Hashirama would come back later this day and hope filled his chest. His brother would solve everything. Tobirama just had to buy the woman and her daughter some time. Izuna followed the two soldiers who were dragging the woman and her daughter. They entered into a room in a badly lit corridor underground and Izuna stopped and Turned to Tobirama.

« Please stay here and keep watch, » he said, « it happened that heretics tried to free their fellows. »

« You… you will start now ? » Tobirama said, trying to keep his voice even, « the sun is about to set. We should go rest and… do that tomorrow. »

« Are you tired, captain ? »

« No. But you have to be. It would be better for you if you rested... »

Izuna smiled.

« I am happy that you worry about my health, captain. But I am ready to suffer tiredness if that means fufilling the orders of the only god. »

Tobirama froze, as Izuna turned on his heels and walked to the door of the room.

« Wait ! » Tobirama cried.

Izuna stopped in his tracks and looked at Tobirama over his shoulder, an eyebrow raised. Tobirama desperately searched for an excuse that wouldn’t sound too suspect.

« At least eat something, » he finally said, « you will work better if you are not hungry. »

Izuna snorted and Tobirama had the terrible impression that the inquisitor knew exactly what he was trying to do.

« Good idea, » Izuna answered and Tobirama felt a spark of hope that was quickly snuffed out, « I’ll do that in a few hours. »

And without further ado, he entered in the room. The two soldiers got out and the heavy door closed with and audible sound. Tobirama shivered. The two soldiers had disappeared upstairs, and he was alone in the corridor, the pale light coming from the scarce lightbulbs flickering. Tobirama closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to ignore the sensation that something horrible was about to happen. It was just a questionning, he tried to convince himself. They would tell Izuna the truth and he would let them leave.

It was at this moment that the screams started.

Tobirama startled. The blood-curling sound was coming from the locked room behind him. He plastered his ear against the door, trying to hear what was happening inside. More screams came, and crying and pleading. A dull sound, and another. More screams. Tobirama took several steps back, his hands on his ears, horrified. His back hit the wall and he stayed there, his breath ragged, trembling.

He tried to open the door, but it was locked and no matter how much he hurled himself at the handle, it wouldn’t open. The screams didn’t stop, became more desperate, and one of the lightbulbs blew up. The light in the corridor decreased.

Tobirama didn’t know how much time he stayed there, listening to the screams. The pain irradiating from the locked room was so potent he felt like burning needles were bieng stabbed through his skull. He tried to cencentrate on something else, to shut his senses down, but he was unable to.

He didn’t understand why this was happening, why Izuna was torturing innocents. But then he thought back about the day and he understood. He remembered himself smiling at the little girl, who had smiled back, and then the sick twist in the inquisitor’s presence. And he understood.

This was because of him.

The screams stopped at this moment and Tobirama looked up (he didn’t remember when exactly he had slid on the ground. What if someone had seen him like that?). He stood up just as the door opened with a click. Izuna appeared, looking smug and satisfied. He had blood on his hands and on his face. Tobirama stabbed his nails in his palms not to punch him in the face. Izuna tilted his head on the side.

« Are you okay, captain ? » he asked in a concerned voice, « you do look quite pale. »

« I am okay, » Tobirama answered in a voice so even he surprised himself, « it must be the light. »

Izuna nodded solemnly.

« Then you’ll see no problem keeping an eye on them while I take a shower and eat ? » he said.

Tobirama shook his head, keeping his hands behind his back not to give into the temptation to strangle the inquisitor.

« Absolutely none, » he rasped.

« Perfect ! I should be back in one hour, captain ! »

As soon as Izuna had disappeared, Tobirama extended his senses, trying to spot Hashirama. His brother should have come back by now. But he didn’t find him. The upstairs were swarming with people, inquisitors and soldiers. There was no way Tobirama would be able to smuggle the two women out of the building without being seen. He couldn’t hide them in his room, the path wasn’t clear and the door couldn’t be locked. As he was desperately trying to find a solution, the old soldier he had met the first day appeared in the corridor, carrying what appeared to be a cup of tea and an apple.

« Hey boy, » he said, giving the tea and the apple to Tobirama, « here. Inquisitor Izuna often forgets that us soldiers need to eat. »

« Thank you, » Tobirama said, downing the tea in one go, « do you know when Hashirama Senju will come back ? »

At this point, it was the only hope he had left. The old soldier’s face twisted in sadness.

« Sorry, boy, » he said, « his unit has been called on something else. They won’t come back before three weeks at least. »

Tobirama felt like frozen water had been dumped on his head. The soldier apparently mistook his haunted face for disappointment.

« I know you wanted to see your brother, » he said, « but it will have to wait a little bit. »

And just like that, he left, leaving Tobirama alone. Another lightbulb blew up. Tobirama had no idea what to do, for the first time in years, he was lost and terrified. He looked at the door and gulped. He had to do something, he couldn’t leave them here.

He entered, opened the light and almost screamed when he saw what was inside. The woman and her daughter were tied on steel chairs. Their clothes were torn and they were covered in blood and cuts. The woman’s legs were obviously broken, knees shattered, and the little girl was unmoving. She was conscious but looking into the void.

Tobirama felt like throwing up. He had seen soldiers tortured for information on the battlefield. But this was nothing like it. They were civilians, and innocents. They didn’t deserve to undergo that, nobody did. His heart beating in his throat, he rushed to them and started untying their bindings. The woman startled, probably thinking Izuna had come back. Her brown eyes watered when she saw Tobirama.

« Please, » she croacked in a voice broken by too many screams.

« It’s going tobe okay, » Tobirama breathed, knowing fully well this was a lie. He couldn’t get them out of here and it was making himsick with himself.

« Make it stop, » she pled, « make it stop, make it stop... »

Tobirama gulped and looked up into her eyes. They were glassy.

« Make it stop, » she repeated.

Tobirama gritted his teeth. He could feel Izuna moving upstairs, probably coming back here. He inhaled sharply and stood up, trembling.

« Close your eyes, » he said softly, « it’ll be over soon. »

The woman did. Tobirama walked behind her, silently prayed for her forgiveness, and broke her neck swiftly. He looked at the little girl and hesitated for half a second. But Izuna was indeed coming back and Tobirama just couldn’t let her between his hands. Biting his tongue to blood, he broke her neck too. Keeping his teeth gritted so he wouldn’t start screaming, he untied them and put them on the ground, so it would look like they had tried to escape. The last lightbulb in the corridor had blown up, leaving it in the dark.

When Izuna came back, he found Tobirama sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of the torture room, his back against the wall, silently staring at the two corpses and looking haunted. The only light was coming from inside the room and it was pale and cold.

« Captain, » Izuna said in a saccharine sweet voice, « what happened ? »

Tobirama didn’t answer.

« Captain ? » Izuna insisted.

The young man looked up at the inquisitor, his wine red eyes empty.

« I heard a strange noise inside, so I went to check, » he lied, « they had managed to escape their bindings and they attacked me. I didn’t have a choice. »

It surprised him how smoothly he was able to tell the lie. Izunaa knelt next to him with a concerned face (but Tobirama could feel how much he was enjoying this and it sickened him). He put a hand on the young Senju’s shoulder and Tobirama shivered,

« Oh captain, » he said in a regretful voice, « I had warned you. Heretics will take your kindness and repay you with hatred. »

He tilted his head on the side and Tobirama screwed his eyes shut, breathing deeply, rtying to forget what had just happened (what he had just done), but the images kept coming back, horrible.

« Are you okay, captain ? » Izuna said, « you look quite shocked... »

On a whim, Tobirama stood up briskly, unable to stay here any longer.

« I’m okay, » he rasped, « I just… I need a shower. »

(He needed to claw his own skin out.)

Without waiting for Izuna’s permission, he left, feeling like he might start screaming if he didn’t get out of here as quick as possible. He could feel Izuna’s stare drilling between his shoulderblades and it took all of his willpower not to run. He went to his room, grabbed a change of clothes and hit the showers. There were two other men here, but they didn’t try to talk to him. Tobirama stripped and opened the water, scrubbing his diaphanous skin as if he wanted to tear it open.

He didn’t know how long he stayed in the showers. He expected being arrested and jailed at any given moment. And he knew that given the state of fury and horror he was currently in, he wouldn’t go down without a fight.

He came back to his senses only when a calloused and burning hand landed on his shoulder and slid down his back till it rested just above his ass. He startled and discovered Izuna, to his horror, as naked as he was. Something must have shown on his face because the inquisitor smiled pleasantly, but something twisted burnt in his presence, and his strong fingers flexed on Tobirama’s lower back, hard enough that it would bruise.

« Are you sure you are okay, captain ? » Izuna asked, sounding genuinely concerned, but Tobirama knew it was an act.

He nodded briskly and took a step back so Izuna couldn’t keep touching him.

« It was your first time being confronted to an heretic ? » Izuna said conversationnally, opening the water.

« Yes, » Tobirama said in a faint voice.

(His first time being confronted to a crazy inquisitor, that was for sure.)

« Well, » Izuna added with a smirk, giving Tobirama a onceover that made him tense, « they say you never forget your first time. »

Tobirama blushed. He wanted to scream, wanted to lash out like a wild beast, wanted to leave, but he didn’t. There was something in Izuna that blocked him, that terrified him.

« Are you married, captain ? » the inquisitor asked innocently.

Tobirama hesitated and shook his head. He wasn’t married, and had never been with anyone. Of course, he looked at pretty girls (and handsome guys too, even if he would never admit it) and felt his loins tighten but he had never acted on these desires.

« Shame, » Izuna said, « a handsome man like you… women really are stupid and blind, don’t you think ? »

Tobirama felt his hackles rising.

« I have to go, » he said.

« Already ? » Izuna complained like a little boy.

« Yes ! I am your bodyguard, not your babysitter ! You can take a shower alone ! »

He knew he was probably going to pay for that later, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He put clothes on and hit the training grounds, raging till he was too exhausted to stand up. He crashed into bed and slept the moment his head touched the pillow. He woke up two hours later, covered in cold sweat and a scream stuck in his throat. And he had to get up and go on about his day as if nothing had happened.

It only worsened from here.

He forced himself to be cold and stony and emotionles. But Izuna always seemed to know where to strike to hit Tobirama hard. He targetted children, young and innocent and defenceless, and made Tobirama stand guard near the door while he tortured them. And nobody seemed to find Izuna’s actions atrocious, nobody tried to question them. Nobody except Tobirama.

When he could, he killed the children before Izuna could hurt them too much (Izuna knew what he was doing, Tobirama was sure of that, but the inquisitor never said anything, just stared at him with that blood-curling smirk of his). But sometimes he couldn’t, and he had to listen to the screams till they died down and the child’s presence with them.

He hadn’t slept well in weeks, the children’s screams and their deaths at his hands (because it was his fault, this was all his fault!) haunted his nights, and more than once, he had woken up with a start to find Izuna sitting next to his bed, watching him intently. He had started blocking his door with a chair.

In retaliation, Izuna had made him enter inside the torture room, and forced him to watch. He had also called two other soldiers, burly men with hawk eyes and the Angels crest on their uniforms. Officially because he was scared the heretics he questionned would rebel and attack. But in fact, Tobirama knew they were a failsafe in case his control snapped and he decided to attack the inquisitor.

He missed Hashirama several times, his brother coming back and leaving on another mission before Tobirama could see him. The young man was starting to fear for his sanity.

It lasted three months, three hellish months. And then Lightning surrendered, the armies of Konoha having won the war. And Hashirama came back to the headquarters, finally. Tobirama lost no time going to him, rushing to where he could feel his brother’s presence, bright and strong and safe. Because Hashirama had always registered safe to him, had always defended him, had always been a haven for Tobirama when the other children were picking up on him. He would find a soltion.

Hashirama would solve everything.

He barrelled into the little court where Hashirama was speaking with other Angels. His brother turned to him, blinked and then a big goofy smile split his face in two and he rushed toward Tobirama, large arms open.

« Tobi !!! » he cried.

Tobirama let Hashirama engulf him in a smothering bear hug, squeezing back when his brother squeezed the living daylights out of him, without a word of protest. It took all his willpower not to start crying. He had missed his brother so much. Hashirama finally let him go, took a step back and grabbed Tobirama by the hips (Tobirama very studiously didn’t wince ; Izuna touched his hips and his lower back as much as he could get away with and being touched there was starting to anguish the young man ; but this was okay, it was Hashirama, Tobirama had nothing to fear) to look him from head to toes.

« Look at you, » Hashirama said softly, « all grown up. You’re a man now. Last time I saw you, you were all gangly ! »

Tobirama snorted and playfully punched him in the shoulder. Hashirama exploded in booming laughter and ruffled Tobirama’s shaggy white hair before hugging him again.

« It’s been too long, » he said.

« Almost four years, » Tobirama croacked.

Hashirama smiled again, took Tobirama face between his palms and kissed his forehead, before throwing an arm on his brother’s shoulders and starting to walk.

« So, » he started enthousiastically, « tell me everything ! I’ve heard that you work with Izuna Uchiha ? I’m glad, he’s such a great and fervent man ! I bet you learn a lot of things with him ! »

Tobirama froze, his breath stuttering in his throat. He had to have heard wrong.

« Anija, » he said in a slightly wavering voice, « he tortures children. »

« I know, » Hashirama said offhandedly, his arm sliding around Tobirama’s waist, « it’s the unfortunate side of the job. »

Tobirama was unable to speak, horro slowly dawning on hm. But Hashirama kept talking.

« It’s terrifying how many children fall in the clutches of evil in this country, » he sighed, « but I guess it’s a sign that these people are lesser than us and need us to show them the way. »

Tobirama was frozen, horrified. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. This was a nightmare. Hashirama couldn’t condone that kind of atrocities, it was impossible. He opened his mouth, tried to say something but he was unable to, feeling like an ice pike had been stabbed through his heart. He was feeling no lie in Hashirama’s presence.

His brother was… condoning the torture and the murder of children.

Tobirama was feeling sick in his very bones. His world was burning down around him. He felt like everything he had ever believed in was nothing but an ugly lie. His brother’s hands on him suddenly became unbearable. But he was unable to find the words to tell Hashirama to let go. He wanted to scream, but his voice was gone.

So he id nothing. He let Hashirama lead him to the canteen, let him sit him on a bench and talk his ear off, answering automatically. He let Hashirama touch him, even if it made him want to claw his own skin out. He felt numb, heavy. He wanted to cry.

Three days later, he was called to the Central Church of Konoha.

************

Tobirama didn’t know what to expect when he had received that summons from the Cntral Church. Probably to be arrested the moment he would set a foot on the premises, dragged to the torture chambers and skinned alive. Not that he would have resisted if that had happened, he was too tired and too numb for that.

Instead, he was led to a large office by a mousy novice. Inside, behind a large mahogany desk, was a man Tobirama immediately recognized.

Hagoromo Otsutsuki, the Chief of the Angels.

He blinked, not understanding what he was doing here. Hagoromo smiled pleasantly and gestured to a comfy leather armchair in front of the desk.

« Ah, captain Senju ! Take a seat, please. »

Tobirama sat, silent.

« Do you know why you are here captain ? » Hagoromo said.

« I… Honestly, no, sir, » he said.

Hagoromo laughed good-naturedly.

« Your brother is one of the best men I know, » Hagoromo said, « and he keeps singing your praises. Izuna Uchiha too. He said only good things about you, and he would like to keep working with you in the future. And we also had excellents echoes from the battlefield. »

Tobirama’s mind was buzzing.

« Which is why it has been decided to integrate you into the Angels, » Hagoromo finished with a satisfied smile.

Tobirama didn’t know what to say. It was his dream coming true, it was what he had always wanted since he was a child. He just had to say yes and it would be his.

But how would he be able to look at himself if he said yes ? Having to bear Izuna’s presence for three months had almost broken him. And they wanted him to spent the rest of his life at the inquisitor’s side ? And Hashirama too, who Tobirama now couldn’t look in the eyes, whose touch now disgusted him ? They wanted him to be a part of an organisation that tortured children just because someone had said it was the right thing to do ?

No.

« Captain Senju ? » Hagoromo asked, apparently surprised by his silence. Tobirama guessed people were usually ecstatic, but he was just feeling cold inside.

« No, » he breathed.

« Excuse me ? » Hagoromo said, stunned.

Tobirama leveled a red gaze at him, colder than steel.

« I refuse, » he growled.

Hagoromo blushed in offence.

« Being part of the Angels is an honor ! » he snapped, « you can’t refuse ! »

Tobirama stood up in one swift movement and slapped his hands on the mahogany desk, starring Hagoromo down. The old man was looking flabbergasted.

« I refuse to be part of an organisation that condone the torture of children, » Tobirama growled.

The words had escaped him, but he didn’t intend to stop them. Finally getting it off his chest felt good, liberating, exhalirating.

« I refuse to be part of an organisation that allows atrocities to be commited in the name of the so-called god it answers to ! »

He snorted and reveled in the shocked expression on Hagoromo’s face.

« You call yourself holy, » he continued, sneering, « but you are just perverts who get off on the suffering of innocents ! You pretend to work for the greater good but your only goal is power and terror ! You’re nothing but a bunch of disgusting fuckers and you make me sick ! »

He stopped, panting. Hagoromo was red with fury.

« Demon, » he started.

Tobirama didn’t let him the time to finish. He jumped over the desk and punched the old man straight in the face, breaking his nose on the spot. Panting, his mind buzzing, he looked at Hagoromo, laying on the marble floor, looking stunned, blood dripping from his broken nose. Crouching on the desk like a predator, Tobirama was feeling like he was able to breathe for the first time in three months. He started laughing before he could stop himself.

And when he saw Hagoromo reaching for one of his Angel swords, he ran, still laughing.

He didn’t remember how he had escaped the Central Church. He just remembered running till the moon was high in the skies, till his muscles were screaming and his lungs burning. He had managed to loose his pursuers in the narrow alleys of the underprivilegded districts. He remembered an old beggar asking him if he was okay, sounding and feeling genuinely concerned.

He remembered being unable to stop laughing.

He had left the city after that, had disappeared. But he had never, ever, forgotten what had happened during these three hellish months. He had never forgotten the blood on his hands, or the feel of Izuna’s hands, or the inquisitor’s sick jubilation when he tortured someone. Or how hurt and betrayed he had felt when he had discovered Hashirama’s true colors.

************

Tobirama woke up with a start, breathless and clod sweat covering his skin. Around him, the airship was still vibrating. The young man groaned and pressed his fists against his eyes to force the images to leave him. He couldn’t believe he had fallen asleep and dreamt about that.

Again.

Looking through the little window, he saw they had almost reached Konoha.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think Izuna will have his own warning from now on


	4. Midsummer night's dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobirama finds Kushina. He honestly wasn't expecting it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No specific warning for this chapter.
> 
> It is shorter than the others, but it is only a transition, next one will be longer.

From the skies, the city still looked beautiful, all high ivory towers and large green gardens, lakes of saphire waters and elegant bridges hung over the rivers crossing it. The Central Church was spreading at the heart of Konoha, large and white and unmistakable (seeing it made Tobirama murderous). When one was on the ground, it was an other story entirely. For sure, the large streets of High Town were clean and prosperous, the buildings running alongside them tall and rich, made of stone and metal and glass, with moulding decorating their frontages. Guards were patrolling and keeping people safe. Men were wearing top hats and coats and canes and women were wearing richly embroidered dresses. Children were laughing.

In Low Town, however, houses had been built on top of each others, with wood and what little metal could be scavenged from what High Town disdained, leaving only narrow and dark alleys to move along. Beggars were abounding, trash was piling and people were looking at their feet, afraid to attract the attention of the wrong people, either the many gangs that ruled over Low Town with an iron fist, or the inquisitors and their guards on an heretic hunt.

Despite that, few left the ghetto to settle in another city or in the countryside. For all her flaws, Konoha had a gravity that attarcted people like a lamp attracted flies. Tobirama counted himself among the few lucky ones who had managed to tear themselves from her clutches.

And yet, here he was again.

When he had been young, Tobirama had loved Konoha to bits, had loved her streets and her gardens and her lakes where he could swimmed if he annoyed his father long enough, had thought her the most wonderful city in the world. He had been but a naive boy sheltered in High Town, away from the cruel reality, and he didn’t understand what the pangs of pain and terror he sometimes felt when he extended his senses meant.

He loved her still, deep inside himself, missed her, missed the security and the love he had felt in the Senju estate. But he wasn’t blind to Konoha’s part of darkness anymore and in a way, he resented her for that.

(Or maybe he resented the Church and people in general for his broken illusion, but one way or another, there was nothing he could do about it.)

************

The airship was about to land, finally. Tobirama was starting to become claustrophobic. He pulled the hood of his coat on his head to dissimulate his face. He had unfortunately very recognizable looks, and after his little stunt with Hagoromo Otsutsuki five years ago, a bounty had been put on his head. It was annoying only when you found yourself in big cities however, which was why he avoided them like the plague. The mention ‘only alive’ on his wanted poster also helped. Usually, bounty hunters preffered to bring back dead preys. It was less troubles, after all, a corpse wouldn’t try to escape.

(Tobirama bet Izuna was to blame for that particular mention.)

As soon as the airship landed and the door opened, Tobirama was out, way too happy to have solid ground under his feet. He spread his senses, in alert, and quickly evaded the rare controls before disappearing into the Low Town.

It was even worse than in his memories.

The houses and buildings were decrepit and dirty, the streets were dirty and reeking (piss, blood and death. Tobirama wanted to throw up). People were looking weary and terrified, and Tobirama could feel people following him, assessing him, probably wondering if he would be an easy prey. Tobirama looked over his shoulder at the bravest of the wannabe thieves (a teenager, way too thin, with a weary face and even wearier eyes) and he glared. The boy startled, surprised that Tobirama had spotted him, and scrammed.

The Senju sighed. The kid probably hadn’t eaten in days and was just desperate. Not that Tobirama could help him, or anybody. After paying for the airship, even with the money he had stolen in Nowhere, he barely had a handful of bucks left, and he fully intended to use them to pay for a room in an inn he knew in Low Town. Of course, he could steal money. But the people of Low Town had nothing and while those in High Town could afford to loose a little money, the gain wouldn’t be worth the hassle.

Tobirama would have to work with what he had, like he had always done.

He finally reached the place where the inn was supposed to be, and he discovered only a pile of ruins and ashes. A board had been hung to the only wall that was still standing, and indicated that the inn had been a den of heretics and that the church had arrested the owners and purified the place with fire. The taste of blood invaded Tobirama’s mouth as he bit the inside of his cheek not to scream.

Even here, the Church was being a pain in his ass.

Tobirama dragged a hand down his face. He would need to find anotherplace to sleep tonight. He could sleep in the street, of course, it wouldn’t be the first time, but it wouldn’t be very resting. There was also the possibility to find someone who would welcome him in their home in excange for a service. Usually, it was sex. But Tobirama had met people who offered him a bed and a bowl of soup in exchange for his help at the farm.

One memorable time, an old man had proposed him a bed for the night if Tobirama pretended he was the man’s long lost son. The young Senju had had half a mind to refuse, but they had been at the heart of Earth Country in winter and sleeping outside was nothing short of suicide. The evening had been supremely uncomfortable, at least for Tobirama.

But right now, the sun was setting and it was highly improbable he would find someone. He sighed heavily. He guessed he was going to sleep in the street tonight.

He turned on his heels and set off to find a place to sleep. He had barely reached another place (that was probably a marketplace, but there were so little shops on it it was very sad) that a swarm of children surrounded him. Street rats. They were a large dozen, small and thin, all of them between the ages of five and twelve years old at most. Their faces and hands and clothes were dirty and their eyes were haunted. If Tobirama had seen only their eyes, he could have believed he was facing elders.

Tobirama felt his heart clench painfully and he gritted his teeth, hard. He wanted to help these children, he really wanted to. But there was unfortunately nothing he could do for them. Even if he gave them the few bucks he had left, either their parents would take them, or the gangs that were no doubt exploiting them would. The young Senju wanted to scream, his powerlessness making him sick.

He breathed deeply, remembering his mission, trying to focus on it. A little girl approached, her blond hair matted by dirt, and she put her hand in cup in front of her. Tobirama gulped. He could feel how tired and desperate she was and goddamn, she could be more than eight.

« I am sorry, child, » he said in a thick voice, « I have nothing to give you. »

The other children approached, looking at him with something akin to expectative in their weary eyes. Tobirama took a step back and stopped just before he bumped into a child that was behind him. He had already seen that kind of scenes. Adults were hiding in the nearest alleys waiting for Tobirama to knock a child over, to surge from their hiding place and demand reparation for the slight.

He looked around, trying to find a way out that wouldn’t involve him hurting a child (never again). Tobirama spotted a wall that he could easily climb. He just needed to approach it and then he could reach the roofs in a few seconds. The children seemed to understand that he was trying to escape because they massed together around him, trying to grab his sleeves and the folds of his coat, begging.

Gritting his teeth, keeping his attention on the adults waiting in ambush, he gently pushed the children out of the way and started to advance toward his objective. Other children poured from the nearby alleys. And just as he was about to reach the wall, he felt a little hand sneak into one of his coat’s pockets and grab the wad of bucks he had here.

Tobirama blinked dumbly and whipped on his heels. The children were already starting to scatter. Tobirama managed to identify the thief, a kid around ten wearing a black patched coat with a large hood hiding their head.

« Wait a minute ! » Tobirama exclaimed, grabbing the little thief’s hood.

His breath suddenly stopped in his chest. As the child twisted to escape the warrior’s hold, a waterfall of blood-red hair escaped from the black hood. Angry green eyes glared daggers at a stunned Tobirama and a chubby face contorted into a furious snarl.

And Tobirama could only blink and let go like an idiot as he was faced with the very reason he had come back to Konoha in the first place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just the first person of a long line of people trying to steal Tobirama's money ^^

**Author's Note:**

> So ? What is your opinion ?


End file.
